Bruschetta

For this appetizer, you can make the tomato mix before hand but you really need to buy fresh bread the day of and toast the bread the day of. Toasting bread under the broiler takes like 2 minutes max and the freshness of the bread adds tremendous flavor to the overall dish. When topping the bread make sure to wait to the last minute so bread doesn't get too soggy.

Ingredients:

2 loafs of fresh bread, cut on the bias into 1/4 inch thick slices
olive oil

Topping:
4 large tomatoes- halved and seeds removed
1 head of garlic
1 bunch of basil (save half the bunch for topping)
2 tbs balsamic vinegar
2 tbs olive oil


Directions:

1. Place tomatoes on a foil lined pan cut side up and broil for 5 minutes until tomatoes are slightly charred.

2. When tomatoes are cool enough to handle, chop and place in a bowl

3. Slice head of garlic in half and place in aluminum foil. Cup/tent the foil around the garlic and then drizzle a little olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Seal garlic well in foil and roast in oven at 350 for about 45 minutes-1 hr or until garlic is golden brown and soft

4. Squeeze garlic into a separate bowl and mash with some salt and a fork.

5. add garlic mash to tomatoes and combine other ingredients of the mixture. You can do this 2 days in advance.

Day Of:

1. Buy bread, slice and toast. To promote browning, drizzle bread with a little olive oil.

2. Right before the party starts top the toasted bread with the tomato mix. I strained the mixture to get rid of the extra liquid so the bread wouldn't get too soggy.

3. Garnish with a chiffonade of basil.